Butterflies of the
Amazon and Andes
Family - NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily - DANAINAE
Tribe - ITHOMIINI
Methona confusa male, Madre de Dios,
The Ithomiini comprises of 376 known species,
although it is likely that at least another 30 will be discovered in
the near future. All are confined to the neotropical region.
are unpalatable to birds, and are consequently mimicked in
appearance by many other species. These include other unpalatable
species ( Müllerian mimics ), not only from the Ithomiinae but also
from several other butterfly families. There are also a large number
of edible species ( Batesian mimics ) which have evolved similar
patterns. Birds have the ability to memorise butterfly patterns and
so learn to avoid eating noxious species, but are also fooled into
ignoring similarly marked edible species.
characterised by having small eyes, slender abdomens and long
drooping antennae that lack distinct clubs. Males have a plume of
long androconial scales or "hair pencils" on the costa of their
hindwings. These are hidden from view when the butterflies are at
rest, but are displayed when the wings are held open during
courtship. Other Ithomiine characteristics include a very slow and
deep wing beat, and a preference for inhabiting the darkest recesses
of the forest understorey.
are basically 2 types of Ithomiine. The first type are the black and
orange-banded "tigers", many of which are mimicked by other species
due to their unpalatability to birds. The second type are the
"glasswings", recognised by their transparent or translucent wings,
prominent veins, and orange wing margins. Many genera contain
examples of both of these types, and in some cases an individual
species may produce adults of both forms according to location.
novices find the Ithomiini very difficult to identify. Using only
the patterns to identify species is very unreliable because there
are so many similar species. Also many species produce a variety of
different colour forms according to locality and season. The best
approach therefore is to use the hindwing venation and other
anatomical features to identify the genus, and to then look at the
wing patterns to short-list the likely species.
Giant Glasswings, which have wingspans of about 90-100mm, include 7
Methona and a single species of
Thyridia. The 2 genera can be
distinguished by the position of the dark cross-bar on the hindwing,
which in Methona is further out from
the base. Thyridia is noted for having
shorter antennae, and a more squarish hyaline window occupying the
basal half of the hindwings.
Methona are primarily lowland
butterflies, found in wet rainforest at altitudes between about
200-700m above sea level.
They are usually encountered singly or in two's and three's,
at light gaps in the denser parts of the
In Peru, in
the late dry season, I observed a female
Methona confusa ovipositing on an unidentified species of
Solanaceae growing at the edge of a narrow forest track. The
butterfly spent several minutes fluttering from leaf to leaf,
"tasting" the leaves with it's feet to determine the suitability of
the plant. It eventually laid a single egg, which was large,
globular, white and glistening, on the underside of a leaf.
Madre de Dios, Peru ©
Shortly after dawn both sexes
undertake short migrations. They can often be seen at this time flying
across rivers - e.g. I have observed this several times on the Rio
Madre de Dios, Peru, in August and September ( late dry season ).
During these flights they periodically pause to spend a few minutes
nectaring at herbaceous plants on riverbanks or in forest glades.
Later in the morning as
temperatures rise they retire to within the forest. Males are often
seen at light gaps where fallen trees have opened the canopy and allow
shafts of sunlight to penetrate to the forest floor. In such areas
they perch on foliage, typically at heights between 2-3m, to await
never observed the pre-nuptial ritual, if one exists, but have found
copulated pairs settled on low foliage at about midday. If disturbed
they fly in tandem and resettle on higher foliage.
are active mainly in the late afternoon, when they slowly and very
deliberately flit about from leaf to leaf searching for oviposition
sexes settle with wings closed, but I have sometimes observed males
slowly fanning their wings, possibly as a means of disseminating
the end of the dry season, the butterflies aggregate in the company of
various other Ithomiine species, at dry riverbeds, where they gather
at the remaining damp areas. At these times the butterflies can often
be found around the base of palms, where they hide amongst the tent of